I Lost My Spam Virginity

I have a confession to make; this weekend was the first time I have ever eaten Spam. For most people this wouldn’t be much of a milestone, however because I’ve lived in Hawaii for the last 19 years, it’s almost unfathomable to believe I’ve avoided it all this time. You see, spam is a local Hawaiian favorite. Eating spam Misubi and loco moco is a rite of passage for locals in the islands. Spam is so popular you can find it on the menus of fast food restaurants like McDonald’s.

While I have never eaten Spam before this weekend, I have wondred that it would taste like dog food. Not good.Bleh!!

The loss of my spam virginity happened because I attended this year’s Spam Jam. This is a highly anticipated festival in Hawaii that celebrates, all things Spam. For nine hours on a Saturday usually toward the end of April every year the main drag in Waikiki, Kalakaua Avenue, is transformed into a Spam lovers fantasy. We had the opportunity to enjoy an amazing array of samples that were being served throughout the festival. While I can’t remember at all of the dishes the spam chili really stood out and the Spam Fusion Fajitas from Jimmy Bufftets. I enjoyed most of the dishes but a couple looked too gross, like the taco, which had large chunks of spam. I preferred the dishes that had a small amount of spam mixed in with the recipe.I will definitely never eat spam out of the can, however, I won’t be afraid to try a dish that has some mixed in at the next Hawaiian party I attend..

I finally dawned on me that it wasn’t really about eating spam out of the can, but rather using it as an ingredient for interesting recipes. DUH!! The truth is that folks in Hawaii aren’t as much in love with spam as they are with the things they can do in recipes with this famous Lunchmeat.